Morning journal and courier., 1887-02-05
THE DAY AT HARTFORD.


Begin In Earnest she Coming Week
Much Interest entering in the Grade
Crossings BiM-What is Said About
1t-An Important Bill Ooncerning the
Care OF Insane Persons i'm County
Jails Becomes a Law-Other Legisla-
tive News.
HARTFORD, Feb. A.
Special to the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
But little business was done BY the legis-
lators at the Capitol to-day. Yesterday shut
off the volume of new business and the only
new matters which came up were petitions
and resolutions concerning topics previously
submitted. Thers was scarcely a quorum in
the House when it was called to order, but
other members dropped in, having come on
| later trains, before adjournment was
taken. Some of the business before the
House was transacted without a quorum.
| The Senate did not meet, they having yester-
day adjourned until Tuesday next. The law
makers were anxious to finish up business in
the House and get out of the city, and at an
early hour this afternoon there wasn't Scion
| in the big Capitol building. There were no
| committee meetings and the lawmakers de-
serted the halls of legislation as soon as pos
| sible after adjournment. The work of max
| ing laws for the next two years will begin in
earnest the coming week and the business
presented since the session opened will I'M
| doubtedly keep the lawmakers active until
| early in May.
House Bill 43 regarding grade crossings
will be considered by the committee on rail
roads the coming week. Much interest has
| been excited all over the State regarding the
l %hn 1oI efo do
| them the commissioners are blocked in many
| attempts to remove grade crossings by the
opposition of town authorities who take APP
peals from the orders of the board, and the
railroads, of course, make no opposition.
The hearing before the committee will IN
doubtedly be an interesting one and
largely attended. The people have been
figuring how much it will cost their town,
city or borough under the provisions of the
bill, which is compulsory in character and
requires that from two to Eve per cent. of the
grade crossings on every road be changed
each year and if railroad company has de-
clared no dividend for the year Immediately
preceding the order of the commissioners to
remove crossing at grade the expense of
the change shall be equally borne by the road
and town city or borough in which the cross
ing is situated. If road has paid i've per
cent. dividend it must pay three-ffths of the
cost; if it has paid five and not over eight
per cent. dividend it must bear seven-tenths
of the cost, and if its dividends are over eight
per cent. it must bear four-ifths of the cost.
One hundred and ninety one of the total fifteen
hundred and twenty one grade crossings in
l., j..
sixty-eight are on the Valley road; eighty
three are on the Northam pton line, the road
now owned by the stockholders of the Con-
solidated road; thirty seven on the She
paug road; thirty five are on the Connecticut
Central. The Derby road from New Haven
to Derby has twenty-five; Meriden and
Cromwell, sixteen; the South Manchester,
5; Watertown and Waterbury, thirty. Towns
that would only have to pay one-6fth of the
expense are those on the line of the Consoli-
dated road which has four hundred crossings,
Norwich and Worcester and the Naugatuck.
The former has nine and the latter ffty-two
crossings on it's line. Towns to pay three
tenths Of the expense would be thoss on the
line of the New England, which has two
hundred and fifty four crossings;
the Housatonic, which has one
hundred and twenty-one, the New London
Northern which has "a, the Shore Line which
has 81, tine New York, Providence and Bos-
6 and the Danbury and Norwalk 66. The
roads that. have less than five per cent.
dividend have 135 cEossiDgs-the Connecti-
cut Western IT, the Air Line 81 and the
Stamford and New Canaan II. The rest
would come under the half and half qualif-
cation, or else be left to the railroad COM
missioners to settle. The committee will
probably have a long hearing as the bill is
generally conceded to be in the main fair
one by the. House members who
have been asked concerning it.
Other bills concerning the matter will be
brought before the committee at the same
time with the bill in question. The bill ex
planned above will require amending to some
extent. A senator considerably interested in
the grade crossing matter said today:
"There are many residents of small towns
through which poor roads pass who think
the roads should pay the entire expense ST
the cha ges. This is not fair They say
that they shouldn't pay any more than the
big cities, which is only about one-ffth of
the expense. But it is the big dividend
paying roads which run through these pros
porous towns and cities, and of course can
afford to bear the brunt."
The bill limiting the franchise of the occu-
pants of the Noreton Soldiers Home was re-
jected in concurrence to day by the House.
The rejection of the bill and the failure of
the committee to recommend it has caused
no surprise. Senator Walsh who introduced
the bill, did SO by request. 1t was handed
to him and he considered it his duty as a
senator to present whatever bills and petit
tons his constituents requested of him, no
matter what subject they partook of. Sena-
tor Walsh in the Senate yesterday, where the
bill was rejected, said in his speech that he
disclaimed any sympathy with the bill and
had introduced it by request.
The House to-day passed the bill regarding
insane criminals. It provides before COM
mitment for an application to Judge of the
nd hats ind
point three physicians to examine into the
mental condition of ther person to be COM
mitted. Representative HYDE explained that
the bill was constructed on purely humanita-
rian grounds. If man committed to Jail
for a criminal offense is thought to be insane
by the sheriff the latter may go to judge of
the Superior court and ask for commission
de lunatlco to examine the patient, and if
the commissioner finds the prisoner insane
he may thereupon be conveyed to the State
insane hospital to await his trial for the
crime of which he is accused. The applica-
ton can only come from the sheriff and the
State attorney has the right to oppose it.
Said prominent representative to-day:
s'There has been much feeling caused against
certain senators and members of the House
for alleged fathering of bills which they pre-
sented. It was a shame to charge Senator
Walsh with being the originator of the bill
disfranchising the soldiers at the Soldiers
Home at Noroton. AS matter of fact I
really don't believe Senator Walsh knew who
gave him the bill. He only did his duty IN
presenting it to the House. We are bound
by duty to our constituents to present all
bills which are rendered us, no matter on
what subject; some of them may be very
foolish and may injure the man presenting
them, but we've got to do it if we do our
duty"
LEGISLATIVE NOTES.
Much interest is centered by the members
of all political parties concerning the expen-
diturss for elections.
Windham and Tolland county Republican
mem bers will meet next Wednesday to nom
mate county commissioners. The Windham
county representatives have voted not to lay
county tax.